Forum: Students and Workers Must Fight Racism

Newark,NJ, November 16 — Forty students and workers organized by PLP gathered in a church to plan a fightback once the grand jury decision is announced for racist killer kkkop Darren Wilson. This is the second gathering that we have held since September on this issue and mobilize our friends to hit the streets against these racist attacks.
Our attendance doubled since the September event, and we heard more workers talk about “the system” rather than just individual cops and politicians. Our job is to struggle with workers to realize that “the system” is capitalism, and that the only way to defeat it is through communist revolution.
After a socializing hour, a series of speakers illustrated the importance of fighting these racist attacks as well as the potential to win many to communist ideas along the way. The first speaker gave an overview of the attacks on black and Latin workers under capitalism. From the prison industrial complex to police murder, the speaker showed how anti-black racism has increased in this “post-racial era.”  
KKKapitalism Killed Kyam, Mike
The second speaker, Anita Neal, mother of Kyam Livingston, gave a passionate speech about how the racist NYPD murdered her daughter and the struggle in the fight against the state. This struggle has taught her that the entire system needs to change, and that the fight for all young people, not just her daughter, is a fight we all need to be involved in — from police murder to the racist educational system.
A third speaker gave an eyewitness account about the struggle in Ferguson. While detailing the daily fights between the protestors and cops, he talked about the lessons that he derived from this struggle and the potential for many of these workers to be won to communist ideas.
Detailing one of his conversations with young protesters in Ferguson, he discussed the concept of communist revolution. He recalled how many of the young protestors want to change “the system” but are still struggling over the idea of communist revolution. His speech highlighted the militancy of the youth in Ferguson and how they are continuously fighting back against these attacks.
The event shows both the strengths and weaknesses of the working class at this point in the class struggle. While we are hearing more workers talk about police murder and the mass incarceration of black and Latin workers, it also shows that we have a lot of work to do to win workers to see that without a communist analysis, we will never win. For example, the election of Ras Baraka in Newark spreads the illusion that workers have power under capitalism (see CHALLENGE 11/26). Even if Darren Wilson were to be convicted of murder, there will be more young black men killed by the cops.
Many of us in New Jersey made plans inside of our mass organizations to hit the streets the night that the verdict for Darren Wilson is announced. Many other organizations are planning demonstrations for the day after. We know that there is going to be a lot of anger regardless of the verdict. Our job is to turn that anger against Wilson and other racist cops into anger at a system that kills, imprisons, and exploits all workers — especially black and Latin workers. We must name that system: CAPITALISM.